Greco-Persian Wars Flashcards
Why did the Greeks win?
Persian mistakes and weaknesses
Luck
Greek tactics and generals
Greek advantages
Persian mistakes - fleet
Mismanagement of the fleet
- not anchoring so vulnerable to storms - 7.49 - Artabanus
- then ‘the number of merchant vessels and other craft lost in the storm was too great to reckon (H 7.190)
Not using extent of their navy
- crowding at Salamis: Shepherd- If Xerxes had simply decided to contain the Greeks inside the straits of Salamis, the war could have been over before the winter’
- After salamis - the bulk of the remaining force retreats as they were crippled by the losses - T 1.73
Persian mistakes - Mardonius
Mardonius mistakes
- Despite having ‘sufficient forces to complete the job’ (SL Cartledge) - still loses
- then when does attack - haphazard - ‘without any attempt to maintain formation…yelling and shouting and never doubting they would make short work of the fugitives’ 9.59
goes for a confrontation when he had already cut off Greek supply lines (8.40) fouled their main spring at Gargaphia (8.49)
Persian weaknesses
Top down structure (Cartledge)
- Abandoning as soon as Mardonius fell - 9.63
Worse troops
- ‘they were deficient in armour, untrained, and greatly inferior in skill’ 9.62
- experienced ‘men who understood war (Spartans) pitted against an inexperienced enemy’ 7.211
Luck
- Storms before Thermopylae - ‘The number of merchant vessels and other craft lost in the storm was too great to reckon’ (400 lost) - 200 then lost by a second storm (7.190)
-killing of Mardonius and Messitstus in the same battle - fleeing troops 9.63
Counter to Persian weaknesses
Persians were not very weak - Cartledge (Greek states medized ‘because they felt sure the Persians would win’),
9.64 they continued to resist and to defend themselves, and struck down many of the Lacedaemonians - (when M was alive) they fought well so not weak.
Caldwell - ‘He had an army that had conquered India and taken Egypt, not the motley array that Herodotus’ so called Army List has led scholars into imagining’ (disproving 9.61)
Armour - Assyrians ‘equipped with bronze helmets 7.62 Lydian ‘equipment closely resembled the Greek’ 7.74
Counter to Luck
Killing generals was a target - ‘they pressed hardest at the point where Mardonius fought in person’ 9.62
Greek tactics
- Salamis
The greeks fought with discipline and held their formation while persians in disarray (8.85) - drawing persians in and then ramming them to disable them - making it a land battle where the better armed hoplites could easily defeat the Persians
- Troezen decree shows planning for battle - experts on each ship, clear command structure - keeping order which we know was crucial
Leadership/unity
- Giving control to Spartans ‘knowing that a quarrel about the command would certainly mean the destruction of Greece’ (H.8.3)
- Pausanias competent - praised by H (9.64)
Pride of being all Greek - Athens not willing to betray - duty. (8.144)
Reputation for ‘valour’ (7.10)
Serpent column showing unity - 30 willing to fight
